Lighting fixtures are used in the construction industry not only to provide visibility, but also as tools to inspect the quality of a surface finish, such as the finish of a vertical wall or a ceiling.
Lighting fixtures that are designed for use in the construction industry and that are known in the prior art may be of different kinds One common kind is composed of an upright fluorescent tube hat projects light with a 360° angle and that is supported by a tripod, such as the Defender E712600 light marketed by Professional Fluorescent Lighting, LLC.
A second kind is composed of a pair of halogen lights that project light forward and that are also supported by a tripod, such as the Designers Edge L14SLED light marketed by Designers Edge.
Another kind includes upright fluorescent lamps supported by a self-righting body, such as the lighting fixtures disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,485,699 to Reda and U.S. Pat. No. 5,590,956 to Messana et al.
These types of lighting fixtures, however, are all bulky and heavy, which causes their use to be cumbersome on construction sites.
When used as inspection tools, the lighting fixtures in the prior art highlight surface defects poorly. The light projected by those lighting fixtures is either spread around 360°, without focusing on the surface to be inspected, or, if projected in a specific direction like in the Designers Edge light fixture, the bulky construction of the fixture causes the lamps to be suited only to project light essentially perpendicularly to the wall rather than tangentially, as it would be desirable to highlight imperfections.
In addition, any metal grids disposed in front of the lamps create shadows that project on the surface being illuminated, making inspection more cumbersome and sometimes hiding surface defects.